El Paso is officially kicking the tires on a major expansion of the Ysleta‑Zaragoza international bridge, launching a search for engineering and planning teams with Statements of Qualifications due by March 18, 2026. The feasibility study and master plan would look at adding at least one new bridge span along with big upgrades to approach roads, inspection facilities and toll operations so the crossing can handle more commercial trucks. City leaders say the effort is aimed at unclogging cross‑border traffic and positioning El Paso for federal money and post‑modernization traffic shifts.
According to the City of El Paso's Request for Statements of Qualifications, the study area centers on 791 S Zaragoza Rd and covers master planning, schematic design, traffic analysis, environmental review, community engagement and feasibility‑level cost estimates. The City of El Paso document also lays out the timeline. SOQs are due March 18, 2026; evaluations and interviews are scheduled for April and city staff are targeting a recommendation for council contract approval in June 2026. Firms must also spell out how they will coordinate with federal, state and Mexican partners as part of the master‑planning work.
As reported by KVIA, the City of El Paso owns three local ports of entry, Stanton‑Lerdo, Paso del Norte and Ysleta‑Zaragoza. Zaragoza is the only city‑owned port that currently takes commercial traffic, which puts it in the crosshairs for any serious expansion plan. KVIA noted that ABC‑7 spoke with Roberto Tinajero, director of the International Bridges Department, about how the city expects to move the project forward.
What the Study Would Examine
Per the City's RFQ, consultants are being asked to look at adding a third bridge structure and redesigning U.S. Customs cargo lots so they include primary, nonintrusive and secondary inspection facilities. They are also expected to examine the expansion of cargo tolling and related operations to support more southbound demand. On the roadside, the scope calls for reconstruction or realignment of Zaragoza Road and improvements at Rio del Norte Drive, Winn Road and Pan American Drive so local traffic is better separated from cross‑border truck flows.
The RFQ further requires proposals for Intelligent Transportation Systems, environmental permitting and construction cost estimates as part of schematic design work. In other words, the city is not just asking for a high‑level wish list, it wants a grounded, engineering‑driven look at what it would take to actually build the upgrades.
Why El Paso Is Pushing Now
According to the City of El Paso's International Policy Agenda, more than $84 billion in trade moved through the Ysleta‑Zaragoza Port of Entry in 2024. That document says the feasibility study is meant to generate the planning and design work needed to pursue roughly $500 million for implementation. The agenda frames the expansion as a way to absorb commercial traffic that could be diverted by modernization work at other crossings and to keep pace with growing binational supply chains.
Funding conversations are already starting to line up. Congresswoman Veronica Escobar's office lists a "Feasibility Study for Expansion at the Zaragoza/Ysleta Port of Entry" among member‑designated transportation project requests, signaling that local leaders are eyeing federal transportation dollars if the study shows clear regional benefits. That kind of interest from Washington could be critical if the project moves into a large construction phase.
Timeline and Community Process
The city's solicitation portal shows the RFQ was posted in February, with a nonmandatory preproposal conference held in late February and SOQs due March 18. Evaluations and a shortlisting process are slated for March and April, with a City Council target for contract approval in June. The City of El Paso portal notes that the selected firm will present to the Bridges Steering Committee and must conduct formal community engagement and environmental review.
Neighborhood leaders in the Lower Valley have for years raised alarms about truck queues, noise and air quality near the bridge approaches, and both the city's policy documents and the RFQ stress community outreach and environmental analysis as a counterweight to pure traffic relief goals. Residents and businesses along Zaragoza Road and nearby corridors are expected to pay close attention to how the study handles those tradeoffs, especially if a third bridge span and reworked roads start to look less like ideas on paper and more like construction on the horizon.
